The US president ordered the aid agency to cut ties with organizations that have funded the insurgent group or opposed efforts to combat it.
US President Donald Trump has begun a process to re-designate Yemen’s Houthi rebels as a “foreign terrorist organization”, the White House said.
Trump’s executive order signed Wednesday directs Secretary of State Marco Rubio to submit a report on the position within 30 days after consulting with the director of national intelligence and the secretary of the Treasury.
Rubio will then have 15 days to take “all appropriate action” against the rebel group, also known as Ansarullah.
Trump’s order to review the status of the Houthis is largely a formality, as a follow-up White House statement confirmed that Rubio, who sought re-nomination during his tenure as a senator. was directed to recommend the list.
Trump listed the Yemeni group as a “foreign terrorist organization” and a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” (SDGT) entity in the final days of his first term.
The administration of former US President Joe Biden reversed Trump’s positions weeks after taking office, citing former Secretary of State Anthony Blanken’s “recognition of the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen”.
The Biden administration re-imposed the SDGT designation – the lower of the two classifications – in January of last year in response to the rebel group’s repeated attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
The White House said in a statement that Biden’s “weak policy” resulted in the Houthis firing on US Navy warships dozens of times, targeting commercial ships more than 100 times and attacking civilian infrastructure in partner countries.
“Under President Trump, it is now US policy to work with our regional partners to destroy the Houthis’ capabilities and operations, deprive them of resources, and thereby harm US personnel and citizens, US partners and maritime territories. Cooperate to stop attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, the White House said.
Following the relisting of the Houthis, Trump’s order also directed the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to “terminate its relationship” with entities that made payments to the group. are, or have resisted efforts to combat it. “Terrorism and Abuse”.
Trump’s order came hours after the Houthis announced they had released the crew of the Galaxy Leader cargo ship, which was seized by the Iran-aligned group shortly after Israel’s war in Gaza began. .
The group’s Supreme Political Council said it had released 25 staff members as part of efforts to support a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that began on Sunday.
